Close to Home
by Allume a Pense
Summary: Post Final Jam. "And if someone held a gun to my head and told me to forget about you, I’d tell them to pull the trigger. I won’t forget you. I won’t." They share their final thoughts on the water. ShaneMitchie


**this is just a little smitchie fluff. :)  
****i hope yall enjoy it!  
****playlist: gotta find you – joe jonas**

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"Every time I think I'm closer to the heart," the low voice skimmed the lake waters, as the shady figure dangled their feet over the edge of the dock. "of what it means to know just who I am." they looked up into the sky, painted azure with the soft blend of pink and yellow against the horizon. The voice continued to hum as the singer pulled out a slim cell phone and checked the time. It was 8:14.

Final Jam had ended only about 15 minutes ago, and the entire camp was still buzzing with excitement. However, while most of them chatted and laughed in the main dining hall, where all the snacks were being held, two of the performers had slipped away for a canoe ride.

Now, the very prompt Mitchie Torres sat on the dock, singing softly to herself a song she'd heard about a week ago. Shane Gray, the leader of the band Connect 3, had written it and sang it to her at this very spot on the water. Tonight, he had improvised and managed to fit it into her performance. Just the thought of the boy made her smile.

"Well, doesn't that sound familiar?" a raspy voice caught her by surprise, and she turned around. Shane was kneeling behind her, and she found herself face to face with the songwriter. "Don't stop. It sounds good."

Mitchie giggled and looked down at the water. "You're late, superstar."

"Hey," Shane shrugged, untying one of the canoes, "You try being wildly famous, then try to get away without anyone noticing where you're going."

"So what did you tell all your fans?" Mitchie smirked, watching him gently untie the boat they would be in for – hopefully – awhile. Shane seemed very concentrated in undoing the intricate knot that connected the boat to the dock.

Once it was finally untied, he looked up at Mitchie, and answered, "That I wasn't feeling well." he grinned deviously, as he bent down to retrieve the oars. He glanced at Mitchie for a moment, observing her entire bent-over body. "Did you get changed?"

Mitchie looked at him, then at her clothes. She changed from her Final Jam outfit into a pair of worn-in jeans and a pale yellow t-shirt. These were what she called her 'weekend outfits', but she was tired of dressing up for camp. "Well, yeah. Sorry, I was just uncomfortable in my other outfit. Sorry that it's so ..." Mitchie trailed off, blushing. She bit her lip nervously.

Shane smiled as he offered a hand to help her up. As she gently placed her own hand in his and stood up, she looked into his eyes lovingly. Part of her wanted him to notice, and part of her wanted him to remain oblivious. "Don't be sorry. You look beautiful."

Without saying a word, the two climbed delicately into the boat, ignoring the life vests. Shane handed Mitchie her oar. "Ready to go in circles again?" he smiled devilishly at her, and Mitchie giggled.

"Ready as ever."

After pushing off, they quickly reached the center of the lake. The lights on shore seemed as beautiful as a city skyline. It was almost completely dark, except for the small sliver of the moon and the camp lights reflecting off the water. You could faintly hear the music traveling from campgrounds. Mitchie trailed her fingertips over the still water. The coldness of it gave her a quick rush, and she looked up.

Shane was looking at her with a mesmerized half-smile, and dark eyes hidden by the floppy black locks blanketing his head. Mitchie blushed and wrung out her wrists, setting her oar down to rest. "Why are you looking at me like that?" she asked in a half-whisper. Her voice cracked from being so quiet.

Shane just shook his head. "When you asked me a week ago, I didn't know. Now I do."

"Why's that?" Mitchie seemed interested. She tilted her head and offered him a gentle smile.

"I can't believe I was looking for the girl with the song, and the voice, and all along it was you. I should have known."

Mitchie shrugged, watching him set his oar down beside hers. "How could you have known? I didn't even know that you heard me singing that day."

"But I should've just figured by the way you—" Shane instantly stopped himself and shook his head, finally breaking the stare.

Mitchie crinkled up her nose, as she always did when she was confused. "By the way I – what?"

"I don't know. Maybe I thought you were too good to be true."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Mitchie retorted. Her mother and father always called her 'Modest Mitchie' because she didn't know how to take a compliment. "too good to be true. You must have me confused with Tess, or Peggy."

"No, it's just that," Shane paused, collecting all this thoughts. "You listened to me. You wanted to be friends with me, not a celebrity. You actually helped me figure some things about myself out. And, you're beautiful." Mitchie blushed. "I guess I thought there couldn't be much more about a person. Like, how much better can you get?" Shane shook his head, still smiling all the while, "You're an amazing song writer, pianist and singer too."

Mitchie was a bit taken aback. "Well, uh, thank you." Modest Mitchie responded. Although inside, her heart was pounding. This boy is _perfect_. There was a short silence after this, where the two were looking anywhere but each other's eyes. "So, now what? Summer's over, and you have to go back to being famous and loved, and I get to go back to school and be nerdy and unpopular."

"C'mon Mitch, you don't honestly think I'm going to believe that _you _are nerdy and unpopular." he asked in all seriousness.

Mitchie shrugged. "Believe it or not, I am not everyone's favorite girl." she teased.

"Well, I know you're one person's favorite girl." he smiled softly at her. Again, she blushed and bit her lip. "And it's not like you don't have my phone number. We can still be friends and everything. A couple hundred miles won't change anything if we don't want it to." he tried to convince Mitchie. Inside, though, he knew things could never work out between them.

"Yeah," Mitchie looked down, somewhat saddened. "We could still be friends."

"Isn't that what you want?" Shane looked surprised at Mitchie's sudden melancholy.

_No. I don't want to be friends anymore. I want to be able to tell you how I really feel, and I want you to hold me close, and I want to always be with you all the time._

"Of course it's what I want."

Shane took this to the heart, and nodded slowly. "Well, then I guess this is it. Tomorrow everyone goes home, and I go back to L.A."

Unexpectedly to the both of them, the heaviness in Mitchie's heart just took control of her, and her throat gave out. The tears gave fast and hot down her cheek, and although she tried to muffle her crying with her hands, it only made her look even more pathetic. Shane was panicked, and swiftly scooted over to her end of the canoe. "Mitchie, don't cry!" he pleaded. "Come here,"

And with this, he pulled her gently onto his lap. She wasn't heavy at _all _and was very easy to move. In a comforting manner, he wrapped both arms around her waist and held her shaking body close to his. Mitchie hadn't completely processed what had happened, but she did wrap her arms around his neck and buried her face into the crook of his neck. "Sh, don't cry. What's wrong?"

"What's right?" Mitchie responded quietly. He could still feel that the tears were still flowing. "I'm going back home to people who don't think twice about me, except for my parents. This was the best month I've had in my entire life. It's not fair that I have to lose you!" she said, completely by accident. Shane's throat tightened up as well, and he began to gently stroke her hair. _So this is what I've been missing._

"Mitchie, don't say that," Shane reassured her. Her body still seemed tense against his. His throat was tight and dry, and his voice was cracking. "You're not going to lose me. You couldn't lose me if you tried."

"I'm just afraid that you're going to forget about this summer, and our songs and ...me." she gasped for air, letting her head rest on his shoulder instead. Her body got chills when he ran his hand up and down her arms.

Shane nuzzled his nose into the top of Mitchie's head, breathing in the scent of her shampoo. "I couldn't forget about this summer, no matter how hard I tried. I wouldn't dare forget our songs. And if someone held a gun to my head and told me to forget about you, I'd tell them to pull the trigger." the smell of raspberry filled his lungs with each shaky breath. "I won't forget you. I won't."

"This isn't fair. I don't want to leave." Mitchie had calmed a good amount now, and she now realized where she was. She was on a late, in a canoe, sitting on Shane Gray's lap with his arms around her and her head on his shoulder. This was the best feeling she's ever had.

"I don't want to leave either. And you know why?"

"Why?"

"Because leaving Camp Rock means," Shane closed his eyes and swallowed hard as he prepared to take his leap of faith, "leaving you. And that's the most painful thing I've ever had to do." at this, Mitchie's body began to shake again, indicating that she was beginning to cry some more. "Please don't cry! I didn't mean to make you upset! I'm so stupid," he mentally kicked himself, letting go of Mitchie.

"Don't let go of me." she was quick to tell him. Confusedly, he followed her instructions and wrapped both arms around her waist again. "I'm not upset, I'm happy. Shane Gray," Mitchie's voice was breathy and still lacking the oxygen she needed. "You are truly amazing."

Shane smiled. "It's what you do to me."

"What could have I possibly done to make you perfect?" Mitchie questioned.

"You made me fall in love."

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_next summer; mitchie's point of view_

There I stood once again in the very spot I stood last year. This time, without my mom standing beside me. Instead, I had two suitcases packed with the proper clothing. I was still the same girl, with the same boring look and the same singing voice I had last summer. This time, I knew what to expect. I knew from experience that home is where the heart is, home can only be called home if that's where you want to be.

As the dirt road cleared and I saw him standing across the way with the same warm smile he's always had, I finally knew what I'd been thinking all along was true.

I am home.

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**there you have it!  
****fluffy, sappy, comforting.  
****please share your thoughts with me. :)**


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